Swiss investment company Crypto Valley Venture Capital (CV VC) has announced that it is evaluating whether or not to set up an African chapter in Mauritius.

The investor, which has so far invested in at least two South African startups — including $70 000 earlier this year in Cape Town based PocketJam (see this story), said in a statement last week that the idea is that the chapter would form part of a blockchain hub covering Africa.

It follows a visit by CV VC CEO and founder Mathias Ruch to Mauritius last month as part of a delegation led by the Swiss Blockchain Federation and organised by the Swiss Embassy.

During his visit to Mauritius, Ruch presented his company’s approach to creating a blockchain technology ecosystem for Africa at three seminars with the participation of leading stakeholders from Mauritius.

CV VC said the idea is that the chapter would form part of an initiative to set up a blockchain hub in Mauritius for the whole of Africa

The first seminar was held on 21 November at Hennessy Park Hotel, in collaboration with the Swiss Embassy and the Mauritius’s Economic Development Board (EDB), and the second was held on 22 November at the University of Mauritius.

The events were supported by a number of actors from Switzerland including the Swiss Blockchain Federation, Swiss Global Enterprise and the Cardano Foundation. A third seminar was organised at the African Leadership College during the visit.

Commenting on the visit, Mathias Ruch, said: “My visit to Mauritius has shown me that there is a strong will to use technology as a driving force for progress across the continent.

“Like Switzerland in Europe, which is home to over 800 companies active in the blockchain arena, Mauritius has the potential to emerge as a leading hub in Africa for the development of a blockchain ecosystem, with the necessary framework, infrastructure, talent and capital for this to thrive.”